Bathing costume



NOV. 2, 1937. ROTHMAN 2,097,777

BATHING COSTUME Filed Dec. 31, 1955 fmanue/ M. R'oHvmar IINVENTOR BY WK 2 ATTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 2, 1937 a UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BATHING COSTUME Emanuel M. Rothman, Philadelphia, Pa. Application December 31, 1935, Serial No. 56,893 8 Claims. (Cl. 2-67) My invention relates to a bathing costume feajoined to shoulder straps l3 which reach over the turing a single garment provided with an overshoulders of the wearer and drop down the back dress and a foundation lining constituting trunks to join the upper edges of the back panels II. and an integral built-in brassiere. The back of the garment is preferably out very 5 This invention has for its object to provide a low and is closed at about or slightly above the 5 bathing garment of this character, with an inner waist line. To facilitate getting into and refounclation lining, which incorporates in its conmoving the garment, the seam at the middle of struction a built-in brassire and a pair of trunks, the back of the back panel opens to a point several and which is attached to the outer portion of the inches below the back opening and is provided garment along the upper open end only, wherewith buttons i4 and button holes l5 to form the by the overdress may hang gracefully over the means for closing the seam. A belt I6 is used figure without being too revealing. to draw the skirt portion l0 more tightly at the Another object of my invention is to incorpowaistline, the belt lfi being threaded through two rate in the construction of a built-in brassiere slots I! in the front panel Ii] and extending certain features which will afford just the proper around the outside of the garment to the back 5 support to the figure at all times although the where the ends are tied together. wearer may be extremely active and have rather The brassiere-like part and lining which conample proportions. stitute the essential features of the present in- I accomplish these objects by means of a bathvention are built into the outer garment described ing garment of which one embodiment is deabove and consist in what might be termed a 20 scribed in the following specification, set forth in foundation lining terminating at its lower end in the appendedclaims and illustratively exemplified a trunk-like portion.

in the accompanying drawing, in which The upper portion of this lining follows the Figure 1 is a view of my improved bathing garoutline of the waist portion l2 and consists of ment shown upon the figure of a model; two pocket-like breast covers and supports 3, 25

Figure 2 is a perspective view looking from the each being made up of three triangular sections back towards the inner side of the front of the la l8' and 3 stitched together along adjoingarment and showing the built-in brassiere feaing edges to form a pear-shaped arrangement. ture; The upper side edges of the pockets l8 are Figure 3 is a substantially longitudinal secstitched to the corresponding edges of the waist 30 tional view of the upper front portions of the portion l2 which forms the V-neck line and arm bathing costume taken on lines 3-3 of Figure 2; hole line leading to the shoulder straps l3. It and should be noted that two of the triangular pieces Figure 4 is a substantially transverse sectional i8 and I8 forming the lower part of each pocket view of a portion of the brassiere and strap for 18, are substantially the same, but smaller in 35 holding the latter in position, the view being taken size than the third or upper triangular piece 18 on lines -4 of Figure 2. These angular pieces are joined by stitching their Referring to the drawing, the bathing costume sides together and the pocket effect is completed comprises an overdress having an outer skirt porby cutting a V-shaped piece out of the center 40 tion I0 consisting of a front panel Ill anda back of the base of the upper and larger triangular 40 panel II, the latter being of two sections sewed piece l8 and by stitching together the edges [8 together along the center line of the back. The of V-cut, as illustrated particularly in Figure 2. side edges of the front and back panels are The lower inner side edges of the pockets l8 stitched together to form a substantially tubular are joined to a front center panel l9, which fills arrangement. The upper edge of the front panel in the narrow space between the pockets, and 45 w joins a waist-like section I 2, although this which at its top coincides with the small space section and the front panel may be in one piece constituting the center portion of the V-neck line, if desired. However, the waist i2 is preferably the panel I9 being stitched to the waist portion l2,

a separate unit, inasmuch as it may be gathered only along the V-neck line. Below the pockets in along its lower edge where it joins the top I8 the front panel l9 spreads out to each side 50 of the front panel Ill in order to produce the to lines corresponding substantially with the side necessary fullness to accommodate the curved lines of the outer skirt portion Ill, where it joins bust lines of the figure. The neck line of the two back sections 20 of the inner garment which present garment at the front is substantially are stitched to the free edges of the outer back V-shaped, the upper corners of the waist being sections II. The extreme lower ends of the front 55 each pocket,

and back sections l9 and 20, respectively, are cut to form trunks 2| when attached together.

Intermediate each pocket I8 and its adjacent back section 28 is a four sided inset piece 22, one side being stitched to the outer lower side edge of the pocket [8, the next side of the inset 22 running along and being stitched to the front edge of the arm hole, the third side joining with the side edge of the back panel 20, and the fourth side being turned back upon itself to form a guide or tunnel 22 The outer or lower edge of the tunnel guide is gathered slightly and then stitched to the side of the inner front panel l9 beyond the lowerpoint of the pocket [8.

Each tunnel guide 22 accommodates an elastic band 23, which is attached at its inner end to the lower end of the adjacent pocket [8. The elastic bands 23 emerge from the comparatively short tunnel guides 22 and follow around the inside of the inner garment to the center of the back, the free ends of the elastics having a hook and eye fitting 25 to separably attach them together.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the present garment consists virtually of an overdress or outer skirt and waist portion and an inner foundation portion comprising a brassire and trunks, the two portions being entirely independent except where they meet along their upper edges and are integrally attached by rows of stitching 21. As a result of this feature in bathing garment construction, the brassiere-like lining foundation is free to mold the figure, lend proper support thereto and to the outer garment portion withoutin any way influencing the style, draping or appearance of the latter.

I claim:-

1. Ina bathing costume, the combination of an overdress open to accommodate the neck and arms of the wearer, and a foundation lining connected to the overdress along the opening thereof comprising breast covering pockets and elastic means passing from the pockets about the body of the wearer inside the foundation lining, the latter including guides formed in the foundation, each guide beginning at a pocket and being inclined downwardly to the side of the garment, said means comprising elastic bands traversing said guides and emerging therefrom at the sides of the garment, and separable fastening means for the free ends of the bands at the back of the garment.

2. A bathing costume comprising in combination, an outer garment and two pear-shaped bust pockets with their lower edges tapering towards a point inside the garment, said pockets being hingedly secured along their upper edges tothe upper edge of the outer garment, and separate adjusting means secured to the bottom points of respectively, said means being adapted to lift said pockets independently from each other and relative to the joint edges of said pockets and the outer garment to adjust the Wearers bust with respect thereto.

3. The bathing costume claimed in claim 2, which includes an outer garment comprising waist and skirt portions, and an inner garment comprising waist and trunk portions, the upper edge of said inner waist portion being attached to the lower edges of said bust pockets.

4. The bathing costume claimed in claim 2, which includes an outer garment comprising waist and skirt portions, and an inner garment comprising waist and trunk portions, said inner garment being provided with an integral tongue, the free end thereof being attached to the upper edge of the outer garment between the said bust pockets, said inner garment being loose within the outer garment and suspended from the lower edge of the bust pockets and the upper peripheral edge of the outer garment.

5. The bathing costume claimed in claim 2, which comprises an insert piece laterally adjacent each pocket and attached at its upper edge tothe upper edge of the outer garment, a guide channel for said adjusting means provided on said insert piece, the abutting edges of the insert piece and adjacent pocket being attached together.

6. The bathing costume claimed in claim 2, which comprises an insert piece laterally adjacent each pocket and attached at its upper edge to the upper edge of the outer garment, a guide channel for the said adjusting means provided on said insert piece, the abutting edges of the insert piece and adjacent pocket being attached together, said guide channel being formed by the turned-over edge of said insert piece and being gathered to render the same expansible, and an inner garment comprising waist and trunk portions, the said inner garment being attached to said insert pieces and said pockets.

'7. A bathing costume comprising in combination an outer garment including waist and skirt portions and an inner garment including waist and trunk portions, said inner waist portion extending at least to the waistline of the wearer and having bust pockets, said inner and outer garments being provided with coinciding upper edges attached together and in the back with coinciding slits extending downwardly from said upper edge, the two garments being attached together along the edges of the slits, fastening means for connecting the slitted portions together, and adjusting tapes attached to and extending from the lower portions of the bust pockets and adapted toencircle the body of the wearer, said adjusting tapes being disposed on the inside of the inner garment, adjacent the wearers body, and extending to the said slitted EMANUEL M. ROTHMAN. 

